A Different Kind of Bruise
by ZoneRobotnik
Summary: When late to sign-ups for a special partnered summer-long cabin-life experience, Danny finds he's been paired with...Dash Baxter! How will he ever survive the entire summer with his relentless bully? Better question: How will he fight ghosts without his cabin-mate finding out who he is? (CANCELLED, please read re-write called "Not All Bruises Are Blue". It's better, trust me.)
1. Ch1: Cabin-mates

You ever have a plot-bunny find a mate and sprout babies without you even knowing how it happened? Yeah...that's what gave birth to this story.

* * *

><p>Chapter One: Cabin-mates<p>

"You've _got_ to be kidding me!" Danny cried out in disbelief.

"I am not, Mr. Fenton." The woman said, gesturing to a clipboard. "All other cabins are taken. Perhaps you shouldn't have been late to sign-up?"

"And none of his ga-…er…_friends_ was willing to be Dash's cabin-mate?!" Danny slapped his hands to his face.

"You and Mr. Baxter were the last to sign up." The woman said impatiently. "At least HE has a valid excuse, what's yours?"

"…I don't have one." He mumbled, glancing away. Not like he could TELL her he was fighting a ghost when he was supposed to be signing up for the trip! Tucker and Sam had already gotten out of going by having summer plans, but his family encouraged him to spend time with other kids ("You know, since you're not exactly going to be spending the summer _ghost-hunting_ with us!") and already paid the entry fee.

They seemed to be really upset that he ran away whenever a ghost appeared…

"Then you're going to be cabin-mates with Mr. Baxter and that's final." She flicked the clipboard in emphasis and walked away.

"Worst…summer…ever." Danny groaned.

* * *

><p>"This has gotta be the worst summer ever." Dash huffed as he saw Danny entering his cabin. "Don't tell me YOU'RE my cabin-mate, Fenton!"<p>

"I had no choice; I was late to sign-ups." Danny said, setting down his bag and looking around the cabin. It was small and fit only two beds with two dressers and a small storage area next to a cooking/dining area. "So, how about we make it easier on each other and pretend the other doesn't exist?"

"Deal!" Dash huffed, kicking off his shoes and laying back on his bed. "Why are you always late to everything, anyway?"

"Ah, see, it's a LOT easier to pretend someone doesn't exist if they _don't_ try to start a conversation with you." Danny said, starting to unpack into his dresser.

"Speaking of _starting_..." Dash said threateningly.

Danny cringed and bit his tongue to scold himself for being snarky. A blue mist escaped his lips and he cringed again. "Uhm…I have to go to the bathroom."

"Don't fall in, scrawny." Dash chided as Danny ran outside. He went behind the cabin, made sure no one was there, then changed into Danny Phantom and flew off to find the ghost.

He beat the ghost in fifteen minutes and came back to the cabin, returning to his unpacking.

"What, did you get lost?" Dash sneered.

"There isn't a map of this place and I _do_ tend to get lost in unknown places like any normal person." Danny said, then mentally smacked himself for being snarky again.

He heard Dash's feet hit the ground and glanced over, seeing his fists clenched. 'Uh oh…' He thought. When the fist flew at him, he ducked low and ran out of the cabin.

"Fenton! Get back here, Fentina!" Dash called after him.

"Nope, not dealing with that." Danny said to himself, going invisible and ducking behind a tree as Dash ran by him wearing his shoes again. 'No wonder he took so long to chase me.' He thought.

He waited until he couldn't see him anymore and then went back to the cabin. By the time Dash returned, he had finished unpacking and was lying down on his side, facing the wall.

"You're pretty fast for a scrawny thing." Dash said, glaring at him as he shut the door behind him.

Danny ignored him, pretending to sleep. Dash rummaged in his dresser and pulled out a notebook. "We have to go and gather dinner, Fentina. Don't forget your notebook." He headed for the door, then looked over at him. "Fenton, wake up!"

Danny gave a half-heartened "go on ahead" wave as he sat up. Dash nodded firmly and walked out, slamming the door behind him.

Even though a lot of people were doing it, the point of this was to live in a cabin for the whole of summer vacation with one other person, using your knowledge about the wilderness to survive. The cabins were far apart, so the groups meeting up would require them to walk a LONG time – or fly, in Danny's case, but he didn't have anyone besides Valerie he wanted to meet up with and she didn't sign up because she had a job. Each cabin had its own outhouse, but you had to walk about five minutes to get to it.

Danny sighed and got up, grabbing his notebook. It was a three-section notebook, with each section dedicated to wilderness knowledge, the day log, (personal journal, in other words. Whoopee…) and a section to keep track of how well he and his roommate got along at the end of each day.

He was sure that section would be quite a hostile read from both of them.

He picked up a basket for herbs and berries to pick and silently wished he's learned to hunt or something because it looked like Sam's kind of meal was his meal for ALL summer. Seriously regretting going to this at all, he made his way out of the cabin and walked into the woods. Due to it being summer, the woods were lit up brightly by the sun and it wasn't hard to determine what was safe and what was not based on trips he'd taken with his family before.

"About TIME you came out, Fentina!" Dash said, noticing him coming into the wooded area. He was about to reach into a bush when Danny's eyes widened and he ran over, slamming into him and knocking him to the ground. "Hey!"

"Don't touch that, it's poisonous!" Danny said, looking down at him. "Don't you know anything about botany?!"

"No, I don't! So how about YOU get the veggies, while I bring home the beef?" He pulled out a hunting knife and shoved Danny off, leaving his basket with him.

"You can hunt?" Danny blinked.

"I go hunting with my dad every winter!" Dash replied. "Don't have a gun or bow and arrow, so a knife will have to do!"

Great, no wonder he was always able to track him down to beat him up. He should've _figured_ he was a hunter.

Danny lucked out by chance and found a bush of boysenberries. Smiling, he carefully picked them and put them in his basket. "These will taste good with whatever meat he brings back." He said to himself.

A blue mist escaped his lips and he groaned. What, was this forest just horribly haunted? He looked around to make sure Dash wasn't around and then changed form, flying off to deal with the problem.

* * *

><p>Fun times will abound! Stuck alone with your best enemy! XD<p>

What do you guys think? Do you want to see more, or should I keep the remaining chapters to myself?


	2. Ch2: Getting to Know You

Chapter Two: Getting To Know You

Dash found the baskets by some kind of bush, but no Danny. "Fenton! Where are you?"

"Here, sorry!" Danny ran out of the woods, brushing leaves from his hair. "I heard an animal and ran for it. What'd you catch?"

Dash proudly held up a couple moles. "They're not too young and not too old – a good catch, don't you agree?"

"They do look good." Danny admitted, then picked a few more berries before stepping away from the bush with baskets in hand. "Unless we make jam, which we can't do with what we have, these will last us all summer." He showed him the baskets.

"Let's get back to the cabin, then." Dash nodded towards it and they started to make their way back.

Okay, maybe this wouldn't be as bad as Danny thought. When focused on his survival, Dash was actually a decent enough person. He just had to avoid being _snarky_ around him again and he wouldn't have any problems until the end of summer, when his parents picked him up in the RV…he was glad Dash wasn't outside to see him be dropped off.

They got to the cabin and Danny went to put the berries in the storage area. "Fentina, can you use an axe?" Dash asked as he grabbed something from the storage area and went outside with the moles and a pan.

Danny stepped out after him. "No, I'm not strong enough for that."

"Can't skin a mole, either. Pfft, you're lucky you got ME for a cabin-mate. Alright, then. Over by the outhouse there's a stack of pre-cut firewood for if we're too stupid to cut down a tree or are just too eco-friendly. Go collect some and bring it back – and don't drop it if you see an animal." Dash pointed towards the woods.

"Right." Danny sighed, walking off to collect the firewood.

The sun was still high in the sky, so it wasn't too hard to find his way. When he got back, the moles had been cut up and put on the pan. "Got the firewood." He held it up.

"Then go fill the fireplace, Fentina. Duh." Dash said, cleaning his knife before sheathing it.

'Might not be a good idea to piss off the guy with the knife.' Danny decided, going inside and putting the firewood in before using a two-stick trick he learned from his mother to start the fire. When he stepped back, Dash stepped inside with the pan and slid the pan onto a grate above the fire.

"Seems you're not completely useless." Dash remarked, looking at the fire.

Danny nodded, going to his bed and writing down the plants he found in the first section of his notebook. Right, dinner was found, and would take a bit to cook….now would be the "get along with your cabin-mate" part.

"So, uhm…you and your dad hunt every winter?" Danny asked, looking over at Dash sitting down at the table.

"I said that, didn't I?" Dash pulled out his knife and started to sharpen it with something from his bag.

"Sounds like you really enjoy it." Danny nodded. "I've gone camping with my mom before, but it was only for a week."

"We're back by Christmas." Dash said, smiling at his knife as he sharpened it. "We always have a blast, me and dad."

Danny set his notebook to the side and got off his bed to join him at the table. "What else do you do with your family?"

"Lots of stuff." Dash grinned. "We're always doing stuff when I'm not busy with school. Mom doesn't like hunting much, but she does other stuff with us. We've gone on trips to other countries, told stories under the stars on road trips, gone swimming in the ocean, gone on cruises…"

As Danny listened to him talk about his family life he felt a bit disheartened and looked down at the table.

"What about your family, Fentina?" Dash asked.

"…You could use my name, y'know." Danny said. "I've…mostly gone stargazing and camping with my mom. My dad…doesn't do much with me." He looked away. "All he thinks about are ghosts, he even forgets about birthdays and anniversaries. And my sister is always using me as fodder to talk down to dad, and…" He pulled away from the table, going to his bed. "Why am I talking about this…"

Dash watched him silently, then continued sharpening his knife before he put down the whetstone and sheathed his knife. "So, basically you have a crappy home life on top of your crappy school life."

"You don't make it any easier on me, to be honest." Danny said, curling up tighter. "And my grades have been slipping because I'm always out at night fight—" He bit his tongue and shook his head. What was he DOING?! Not only was he telling Dash about his private home life, but he nearly let it slip who he was?! This stupid trip was messing with his head!

Dash rolled his eyes. "So stop getting into trouble with gangs, Fentina." He went to check on the meat. "About half-done." He murmured.

"Gangs"….right. Yeah, he supposed you could call the whole of the Ghost Zone a "gang". More like a Mob, really. He pictured some of the more casual ones in black suits and started to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Dash asked, looking over at him.

"Nothing…nothing." Danny shook his head. "Just…thought of something, that's all. You wouldn't get it."

"Whatever, Fenton." Dash looked at the fire again.

"You're never going to call me by my first name, are you?" Danny frowned.

"If I did, it would imply we have a closer relationship than we have." Dash replied. "Besides, it's more fun to twist your stupid last name into a girly name than it is to find ways to say 'Danny' in effeminate ways without it sounding exactly the same."

"Yeah, tell me about it." Danny mumbled, thinking of his female clone Danielle. Where was she right now? Was she okay?

"So, what DO you actually like about your life?" Dash asked, cutting into his wandering thoughts.

"…I have Sam and Tucker." Danny looked down. "That's about it. Other than that, I don't really have much I like about life."

"You're so depressing, Fentina." Dash took the meat off the fire and went to his bag to pull out plates to put it onto. "Did you remember to bring water?"

"Uhm…" Danny bit his lip and looked in his bag. "No, I guess not. I was…busy, thought there would be a water-source nearby."

"If you wanna call twenty miles 'nearby', sure." Dash rolled his eyes. "Fine, I'll share mine with you." He walked over to his bag and pulled out a big water bottle. "You're really inexperienced at this 'outdoors' thing, aren't you?"

Danny got off his bed and went to the table. "Yeah."

Dash went to his bag again and got two glasses and poured some water in each one. "They gave us a pan, but everything else we had to bring." He handed over the glass, then went to his bag to get out a set of silverware for camping.

They ate quietly, Dash looking unusually thoughtful. Danny wanted to ask, but thought it would be rude to interrupt and so retained the silence until Dash finally broke it. "You know, I did bring a saucepan. We could make a drink by mashing up those berries if we run out of water."

"That's what you were thinking about? Danny blinked.

"Yeah, 'cause you're too inexperienced to know what to do when your cabin-mate doesn't PACK properly!" He flicked Danny's forehead and Danny winced, cringing back. "_I_ gotta do all the thinking, yeesh!" He picked up their empty dishes and took them outside, coming back in to grab a sponge from his bag before going out again.

"Yeah, I know." Danny mumbled. "I'm pathetic and weak and don't know anything." He got up and went to his notebook, opening it. 'All things considered, he only hit me once.' He thought, writing down that so far their relationship was…a little better than usual. Then he wrote in his journal log about how his day went (excluding the ghost fights, obviously) and put it away. After making sure Dash was still busy outside, he changed into pajamas and climbed under the thin covers.

Before he was fully asleep, he heard Dash come back in, put things into the storage area, and then write in his notebook. He fell asleep to the sounds of the pencil writing on paper. 

* * *

><p>Dash was woken up by a light shining brightly in his room, and he glanced up without moving to see Danny change into Danny Phantom before flying into the sky. "What the…" He murmured, frowning. What kind of weird dream was this? Shaking his head, he decided to wait up to see if he would come back, pretending to be asleep.<p>

An hour later, he did. He was looking pretty beat up and muttering to himself as he landed, changing back into Danny Fenton before climbing into bed. "Hopefully this'll be all healed by tomorrow; otherwise I'll need a convincing lie to tell Dash." He mumbled. "Stupid ghost…"


	3. Ch3: I Know Your Secret

First of all, let me apologize to Guest for not making it clear. ^^; This IS going to be a Teddy Ghost fic, and there WILL be much slashing between the two, so I apologize if it drives you away and thank you for reading anyway. Secondly, if I take a while to reply it's because I now have seven fanfics based on Danny Phantom I'm writing and so if I take a while to update that is why. I should, hopefully, have some chapter of my other ones uploaded to this site soon so you can see them.

* * *

><p>Chapter Three: I Know your Secret<p>

The next morning, Danny and Dash ate more of the mole and some of the berries before going out to locate the water and see if it was safe to drink without boiling. "There's an axe by the firewood, so if you wanna chop down a tree you can." Danny said, glancing at Dash as they walked by the outhouse.

"Yeah, I'll think about it." Dash said, staring at Danny as they walked.

"Can you…stop staring? It's kind of unsettling." Danny said, frowning.

"How do you do it?" Dash asked.

"Do what?" Danny sighed.

"Lie straight to someone's face so easily."

"Huh?" Danny looked at him, then cried out in pain when Dash slammed him against a tree, pinning him there. "Ow! This hurts, Dash!"

"You've been lying to everyone!" Dash leaned in close, his face right up to Danny's. "Hiding such an important secret! How do you do it without cracking?!"

"Can you please explain what you mean?" Danny asked, reaching up to try to pry his hands off. Dash gripping his wrists instead and whirled them around to pin him to the floor. "Ow! Get off!"

"Change and go intangible. That'll get me off." Dash said, grinning like a madman.

Oh shit. Danny froze, his skin growing pale. "What are you talking about?" He asked, his eyes wide and shaking.

"I know who you are!" Dash gripped his wrists tighter. "You're never around when he is because you ARE him!"

"What—ungh—are you talking about?" Danny struggled in his hold.

"You're Danny Phantom!" Dash said excitedly.

Well, the shit just hit the fan. Danny felt all the color drain out of his face and turned his head away. "W-What, are you crazy? He's a ghost, I'm human!"

"Only part of the time. Last night, I saw you change into him and then him into you. I don't know how you do it or how it happened, but you're Danny Phantom!" Dash grinned.

"Y-You're really crazy!" Danny tried to pull free again. "I'm not a ghost! Just because we share the same first name, it doesn't mean—" He was interrupted by a blue mist escaping his lips. "Oh no…" He groaned.

Dash let him up, looking ahead of him. "Uh…"

Danny looked behind him. "…Great. A big one." He sighed. Well, since Dash had already figured it out why even bother trying to hide? He got up and changed into his ghost form before diving at the ghost, blasting it again and again. "Seriously, can't you guys get an afterlife?! This is just stupid! I can't even defend my humanity without you coming along to get in my way!"

The ghost was beaten after ten minutes and then he looked down at Dash with a "fine, you win" shrug. "Alright. Yes, I'm Danny Phantom. Are you going to stop beating me up now? Because people are going to wonder why, since you kind of hate my guts."

"Come down." Dash pointed at the forest floor.

Danny slowly lowered himself to the ground and started to change back, but Dash suddenly tackled him and knocked him to the ground, interrupting the change. "Hey, let me—mmph?!" His green eyes widened as Dash forced a kiss onto his pale lips.

Hold on…  
>Brain is still processing this...<br>Pinch yourself…

Yeah, this is definitely still happening. Not a dream. Dash was actually kissing him – apparently his fanboying went beyond just swooning and ga-gaing over Danny Phantom. His hands were tight around Danny's wrists, and he was pinning him down so he couldn't get out – not without going intangible that is. He made his arms intangible, slipping them out of Dash's grasp, and made them tangible as he shoved him away.

"What are you DOING?!" He cried, lifting into the air a few feet. "I'm a boy! Your classmate, Danny Fenton! Who you hate! Why are you KISSING me?! This makes no sense, none of it!" He started to fly in circles. "None of it!"

Dash looked up at him, licking his lips a bit to savor the taste of Danny Phantom's lips. They were warmer than he had expected, his being a ghost, but still colder than a human's would be. "I've always been fond of Danny Phantom! Your being him changes things!"

"No, it_ can't_ change things! If people find out, if my PARENTS find out who I am, I'm a DEAD man!" Danny stopped and looked at him. "You can't tell anyone. You absolutely can't tell, promise me!"

"Come down." Dash said, getting up from the ground.

Danny lowered himself to the ground cautiously, remembering the last time. Dash walked over and took his hand, smiling as he kissed it. "Okay, Danny. I promise. In front of everyone else, it'll be the same between us."

Danny shivered at his expression and looked away. "…We should…continue on. We gotta find that water."

"Can't we fly there?" Dash asked.

"I'd rather walk. I need the exercise, and it builds up my ghost power to have strength in my physical body." Danny landed and changed into his human form, pulling his hand away from Dash's.

"So, when you said you were in fights at night, you meant with ghosts." Dash said, the two walking on.

"…Yeah. And I laughed because I pictured some of them in outfits like a Mob would wear, with the black suits and hats." Danny glanced at him. "My dad calls me a coward for not fighting ghosts and always running away when they're around. I can't tell him the real reason, so I put up with the verbal abuse." His gaze turned to the forest floor, his shoulders slumping.

Dash took his hand, making Danny jolt and looked at him warily. "Well, at least you have one person you know won't turn on you."

'Yeah, but at what price do you keep this secret?' Danny thought.

They arrived at the river a few hours later and Dash collected it with a small cup, sniffing it and giving it a taste before handing it over. "Seems clean; you try it."

Danny took the cup and turned it around before sipping from the opposite side that Dash did. Then he looked at the river. "There's usually a waterfall near a river, so if we find that we can wash up. I could fly up with a map, if you have one, and determine where it is and how far."

"Map's back at the cabin, but that sounds like a good idea." Dash nodded. "We'll come back with the water bottle when it empties, this water's good to drink without boiling." He stood up and shook water from his cup before putting it in his backpack. "So, what DID you pack? Soup? I noticed a thermos in your backpack."

"Uhm…that's not for soup. It's for catching ghosts." Danny pulled it out. "I always bring it with me, in case I run into a real dangerous one." He showed him the buttons. "See? This one's for captured, this one's for releasing. It didn't use to work, until I put my ghost energy into it."

"So, how did you become a ghost in the place?" Dash asked.

"…It was an accident. I didn't think anything would happen; was told it was broken. My parents built a supposed portal to the Ghost Zone and I…opened it. When that happened, half of me became a ghost." Danny looked at his reflection in the river. "Only Tucker and Sam knew at first, but then my sister found out and promised to keep it a secret…and now you know." He looked at Dash.

Dash smiled and took his hand. "I won't tell anyone, don't worry."

Danny nodded, looking at the woods. "We should head back to the cabin."

Dash squeezed his hand and then they walked back through the woods, Danny pointing out different plants that would be safe to eat and saying firmly which ones weren't safe. Dash seemed to be paying more attention to what he was saying now, which was both a good and a bad thing. He wondered if Dash would be able to pretend that he still hated him.

And summer vacation had just started…


	4. Ch4: Hunter

Chapter Four: Hunter

* * *

><p>"Remember, not a word about who I am in your journal. You know she'll be reading these, so I've been leaving out any and all mention of ghost fights." Danny said when they sat down with their notebooks.<p>

"Yeah." Dash looked towards the pan of moles. "Might need to get more tomorrow. Or at least get something else to eat for variety."

"Mole isn't so bad." Danny commented. "I'd never had it before now."

"Yeah, it's pretty good." Dash finished what he was writing and then put the notebook away. "Still writing, Danny?"

"…I think I preferred when you gave me the nicknames." Danny said, grimacing. Yeah, Dash really would have to be told again to pretend he hated him.

Okay, so he was stuck in a cabin in the middle of the woods with his biggest fan and bully for years. Which was REALLY weird, but he could live with it. It was only for a little while. He put the notebook away and then started to pull off his t-shirt but paused, climbing under the covers with his pajamas and changing without Dash seeing. He didn't feel any safer around him than before, but for much different reasons.

He finished changing into his pajamas and then put his dirty clothes under his bed, climbing back into bed and turning to face the wall. The fire in the fireplace was lower, giving off a dim light that barely showed much more than the moonlight. He sighed and curled up, closing his eyes.

And then promptly opened them again when he felt a weight on the edge of his bed. "Uhm…excuse me…" He glanced at Dash. "You have your own bed."

Dash reached out and stroked his hair. "Why does it turn white?" He asked.

"Don't know. My entire appearance got inverted that day. And as for the eyes, ectoplasm glows green." Danny said, jerking his head to try to get him off his hair.

"Huh." Dash leaned over and kissed his cheek. "Well, I like it white. It's got a kind of purity to it."

"Please, stop touching me—don't kiss me." Danny squirmed, trying to get away, but Dash was straddling him and keeping him from moving or getting away without going intangible. And, no, he wasn't going to do that again.

"I like touching you, though." Dash said. Danny glanced at him and grimaced a bit. His eyes were sharp – the eyes of a hunter that had cornered its prey – and he had an adoring smile on his face. His hand moved from Danny's hair to his chin, turning his head to his as he leaned in close.

NOPE! Not happening! Not again! Danny went intangible and ducked under the bed, crawling out and standing up before turning tangible again. "Did I forget to mention I can use my ghost powers in human form?"

"Did you know the best part about hunting is the chase?" Dash asked, getting off Danny's bed.

Uh oh. Danny changed into Phantom and flew out, going into the woods.

He COULD run away, go back home, but people would wonder how he got back without a ride when the cabins are so far away from Amity Park. Instead, he found a tree to sit in and watched cautiously as Dash came out with his coat and shoes on, looking around.

'Great. As if ONE hunter wasn't bad enough, now I'm being stalked by TWO!' He thought, slumping against the tree.

In retrospect, being Phantom at night when trying to hide was a bad idea. His glow alerted Dash to his location and he flew off, being trailed easily. Then a blue mist escaped his lips and he let out a groan. This was NOT his night!

'Whoever this is, they're going to get BEAT.' Danny flew up and looked around for the sign of the ghost. Oh, right. Make that THREE stalkers; how had he ever forgotten that they were around HIS territory?

"Daniel, what a pleasant surprise!" Plasmius grinned.

"I don't have time for you, I have a hunter on my tail." Danny said, holding out his hand. "Don't care what you're up to, I don't have time for it."

"Skulker?" Plasmius guessed.

"No." Danny sighed.

"Guys in White?" He guessed again.

"No." Danny looked down at the blonde figure that had spotted them.

"Your parents, then." Plasmius guessed a third time.

"Wrong every time, fruit-loop. It's a psychotic fanboy who found out who I really am and is being very…ah…" He covered his mouth, thinking. "…Touchy-feely?"

Plasmius laughed. "Well then, by all means! Why deprive him of this?" Plasmius powered up an attack.

"Uh oh." Danny cringed and ducked out of the way, but a clone appeared and latched a belt onto his waist, locking it on as another went behind him and caught his arms so he wouldn't fall. "Hey—no fair! This is—ungh!" He groaned in pain as he was punched in the gut and then a whop to the head had him seeing stars.

Plasmius chuckled and then he and the clones lowered down to where Dash was. "Do me a favor and keep him busy, would you?" He tossed him the key to the belt and then Danny was dropped at his feet.

Dash blinked and examined the key. "What's this?"

"As long as he has that belt on, he can't change form even if knocked unconscious or use his powers." Plasmius explained. "The key unlocks the belt."

Dash knelt next to Danny, who was groaning in pain. "You hurt him?"

"He would've run off by now if I hadn't. He'll heal." Plasmius smirked and flew off, his clones going back inside him.

"Huh. Weirdo." Dash pocketed the key and picked up Danny, lifting him bridal-style and carrying him through the woods. He was surprisingly light for a boy his age, but maybe it was because he was in his ghost form.

They got back to the cabin and he laid him down before gently kissing him and going to pull the curtains on the cabin.

Even with the fire down and the curtains closed, the cabin was still lit by the soft glow from the ghost teen. Dash swallowed and approached him, looking him over. He had seen him in action so many times, but seeing him in a completely vulnerable state was…enticing. And yet, he still felt like it was missing something. Maybe it was because he hadn't caught him himself, but the catch felt a little empty.

Still, a catch was a catch and while he didn't know what the older ghost's deal was or what he needed Danny Phantom distracted for, he wasn't going to miss this chance. He reached up and gripped the small silver zipper at the base of his neck before pulling it down, the black bodysuit parting to reveal flawless skin. He tugged off one of his gloves and looked it over lovingly. The fingernails were short but neat, the skin was soft and pale, and he could see green veins beneath. 'Ectoplasm, maybe.' He thought. He didn't know much about it, but it seemed to be a big part of ghosts.

He removed the other glove and then the boots and socks. The belt was in the way of the bodysuit, but he hesitated to take it off and decided to save it for another day. He kissed Danny's lips gently, then moved down his chest to where the belt stopped and then took off his coat and shoes before climbing in bed with him.

* * *

><p><strong>Phew, creeper decided removing the belt was too much trouble and left it on.<br>Uh...Dash, you have your own bed. ~ Zone**


	5. Ch5: Powerless

Chapter Five: Powerless

* * *

><p>'Plasmius!' Danny's eyes shot open and he realized he was back in the cabin. He groaned and held his head, pausing when he saw blonde hair next to him. 'Oh no…' He looked down at himself and sighed. Apparently the belt was still on, which meant he couldn't change back or use his powers to go intangible or anything remotely helpful. His gloves and boots were off and his suit was unzipped down to his waist, where the belt halted any lower unzipping. He slowly zipped himself back up and moved the arm that was draped over him off, carefully climbing over Dash's body.<p>

Apparently not careful enough. He felt a hand grab his arm and then he was down on the mattress again, Dash's lips on his. "Nn! NN-nn!"

"Good morning." Dash smiled, breaking the kiss.

"You—what—where's Plasmius?!" Danny demanded.

"Who?" Dash blinked.

"The older ghost I was arguing with last night!" Danny explained.

"Oh. He said for me to keep you busy and left." Dash touched the belt. "He gave me the key to this, if I ever want to use it."

"Dash, Plasmius is a dangerous ghost who can't be allowed to run around freely." Danny said, starting to sit up again. "I have to stop him, so if you could unlock the belt and let me out of here that would be great."

"But then you'd run away again." Dash raised an eyebrow. "Really, Phantom, what's in it for me if I let you go?"

Crap…he had assumed he would be willing to help him, but he was still the same old Dash… "I'll…go on a date with you?" Danny offered.

"Why would I want a date when I already have you in my bed?" Dash raised an eyebrow.

"Dash, I'm fourteen. Way too young for anything else." Danny reminded him. "A date is the best I can offer."

Dash pushed him back down, leaning over him. "It's not what I want, though."

Danny clenched his fists. "You have to be joking! You let me go free so I can stop Plasmius from his world-takeover schemes and I sleep with you? That's just not fair!"

Dash kissed him again, cutting him off further. "Not like you're the only one who can stop him, Danny." He said against Danny's lips.

Danny looked away, biting his lip. Dash was right, there were others that could stop him, but no one knew Plasmius like he did. No one knew just how to weaken a halfa like he and Plasmius knew. Still, freedom for sex was just ridiculous! He wouldn't do it!

"No…I guess there are others." He said resignedly, looking away.

Dash nodded and got off him, going to set the table for food. "You still eat, right?"

"Yes, I eat." Danny stepped off the bed and pulled on his gloves and boots. Then he sat down at the table, glaring at the belt. "You know, this thing actually hurts to wear it for long." He said, glancing at him. "Bet Plasmius forgot to mention that, huh? It's supposed to ward off ghosts from the wearer, but for a half-ghost it just blocks the ghost powers and zaps me every now and then." He looked at the table. "Not as bad as blood blossoms, but nasty…"

Dash served him the mole meat and poured him water, looking thoughtful. "Alright, so you don't have to sleep with me right away. We can build up to that, we do have all of summer vacation after all." He handed him the water and then pulled out the key. "Just don't run away from my affections anymore and you'll be free to change form, fly around, whatever you want. It'd be nice to have you being affectionate, too."

Pretend he's in love with Dash in exchange for freedom? Right…that was a little better than the earlier option. "…Sure. I can do that."

Dash nodded and unlocked the belt, letting it fall off his waist and to the floor. Then he picked it up and put it in his bag, slipping the key into a pouch that he buried deep inside. "Then we have a deal." Dash smiled and walked back over to the table, tilting Danny's face up and kissing him.

Okay, now would be the time to show affection. Danny swallowed nervously and closed his eyes, his lips moving slightly to return the kiss. Then Dash was pulling away and they continued their meal, Danny changing back into his human form before he started eating.

"So, who is Plasmius?" Dash asked as they ate.

"He's a half-ghost, like me, who hates my dad and wants him dead. He also wants to take over the world, because apparently killing my dad isn't evil enough for him. He also wants to marry my mom and have me and my sister for his kids – when he isn't trying to KILL me." Danny groaned. "For the sake of ghost-confidentiality, I won't tell you his human name."

Dash nodded, cutting into his meat. "So, how often do you guys fight?"

"A LOT." Danny frowned. "He's my archenemy. The other ghosts I run into a lot are just annoying, but HE is a pain!"

He spent the rest of breakfast talking bad about Plasmius and laughing about some of the less troublesome ghosts.

"And then there's The Box Ghost. He's all like 'BEWARE' all the time and I'm like 'Ho-hum, can we get to the part when I knock you into the Ghost Zone'?" Danny chuckled. Funny, now that he didn't have to hide who he was and Dash didn't want to beat him up for fun anymore, they got along very well.

Heck, maybe they could say that without the pressure of their peers Dash actually talked with Danny and realized he was more than a punching bag.

"So, that mist thing?" Dash asked as they sat outside washing the dishes.

"That's my ghost-sense, it lets me know if there's a ghost or half-ghost nearby." Danny said, setting the plates on a designated flat stone to dry. "It really comes in handy, but it doesn't always work." He admitted. "And if it's really cold I can't even tell it's happening." He thought of when he'd first encountered Spectra – god, what a crazy woman…

Dash nodded and then placed a hand on his shoulder. "Wanna go for a walk?"

Danny looked up at him and nodded, standing up and walking into the woods with him. "So, we've mostly been talking about ghosts. We should talk about something else."

"You said that your sister knows?" Dash looked at him.

"…Yeah." Danny pursed his lips. "She's been helpful at times, in the way at others. She once put me in the thermos!" He huffed.

Dash laughed. "Didn't like it?"

"It was cramped, dark, and there's no concept of time in there. A hundred years could pass and I wouldn't know it from a day." Danny said honestly. "I try to get the ghosts out of it as quickly as possible, but there's one guy that will be in his thermos forever."

"Who?" Dash asked.

Danny pursed his lips. "Uhm…a powerful enemy I defeated. He would've destroyed everything and killed everyone I loved."

Dash gently took his hand. "It's good that you took care of him, then."

Danny looked away. "He's pitiful, though. He's driven by rage and despair and loneliness. He was rejected by the one person who really mattered to him and everyone else who cared about him was dead or rejected him at the same time. He's heartbroken, but that's not an excuse to let him run loose and do what he wants to."

Dash smiled a bit. "Sounds like you know him well."

"Too well." Danny looked down. "He's…he's me, in another timeline; which is why it's so painful to keep him locked away."

Dash tilted his head up and kissed him. "Let's stop talking about it, you're getting distressed." He stroked his cheek.

Danny blushed and turned his head away. "I have to locate Plasmius…would you mind me going?"

"Why not wait until tonight? Or tomorrow?" Dash asked.

"If I wait too long, I could be too late." Danny said darkly. "I have to go." He changed into Phantom and lifted into the air.

Dash held his hand tightly, looking up at him. "Promise you'll return in good shape."

"I'll try, but Plasmius is…brutal." Danny went intangible and pulled away, flying off into the mid-morning sky.

Dash reached out for him, then clenched his fist as he lowered it. "I should've never let him go." He said to himself.

* * *

><p><strong>Yep, Danny is not going to sacrifice his virginity just so he can go after Plasmius!<br>Good thing that Dash listened when he said that the belt was hurting him. Go get Plasmius, Danny! ~ Zone  
><strong>


	6. Author Note: Re-write?

**Dear readers,**

**There comes a time when someone is writing that they feel an urge, based on someone's comment, to rewrite. I've been told that this story is rushed and the characters are OOC, and so I'm considering rewriting it so it's not so rushed. They're right; Danny told Dash way too much at the beginning, and that's just not what he would do. But, I know that people have been waiting for updates, so I'm going to leave it up to you:**

**Should I re-write this story? Or should I continue on as-is, regardless of how OOC everyone is being? When I first did this, it was simply for the sake of doing it. Therefore, I didn't have much inspiration for a while. But now that I have people asking for me to update, and someone commented that everything is rushed and OOC, I think I might have enough inspiration to do a decent rewrite. A lot of things will change, such as how early on they have romantic/sexual encounters. I will also be focusing more on the story than on the sexual stuff, and so most of it will be implied unless something happens in the scene aside from the sex.**

**I'm leaving this up to you, the readers, and will see how many people ask to keep it as-is and how many ask for a re-write.**  
><strong>I await your answers. ~ Zone<strong>


End file.
